Pug Partay!!

Since Kiko was very little, we have been taking him to pug parties. Yes, you read that correctly. There is a subculture of people who own pugs and feel compelled to get 30-40 of them (or sometimes in exponentially larger groups) together in one house for an afternoon of butt-sniffing, snorting, sneezing, and meandering around in one big swarm. They are like bees in movement, when together in large groups. I still remember his first pug party, when he was about 16 or 17 weeks old. We dropped him into the crowd of pugs and he was off, tail wagging, sniffing everybody's booty, and having a grand ole' time. Since then we have actually held our own pug party, for Kiko's first birthday party. In attendance were 23 pugs, two bulldogs, and a chihuahua (although I believe the chihuahua was more of a blouse accessory than another birthday party participant). We had a doggy birthday cake made of carob and other dog-friendly ingredients, and there were lots of happy pugs running, jumping, and rolling around in our backyard for a few hours.

Since moving to Illinois, we have not found another pug party group like the ones we were involved in, in Orlando. It seemed people just aren't as weird here I guess, or at least weird people don't congregate together as much. That was until I stumbled upon the Pug Crawl of Chicago. It's exactly what you're thinking it is . . . a pub crawl, but with people and their pugs. For the last two years Sam and I have been trying to go, but it always seems to fall around the time I have to study for midterm exams. Then, this fall it finally fell on a weekend we could get up to Chicago. So we packed Kiko and all his paraphenalia into the Honda Element and drove ourselves towards Pug Fantasyland. When we got there, there were over 200 pugs in this one establishment and it was hysterical. Pugs were dressed up, in strollers, with party hats on, and hanging out in every corner of the place. We had a good time that day, and Kiko was zonked out at the end. I'm including some pictures of the party, and then pictures of Kiko passed out on the ride home. I think he slept for two days after that party. ;)

An older dog can, maybe, possibly, learn new tricks

Kiko the seven-year-old wonder pug is finally starting some obedience training at home with the help of an Ian Dunbar DVD. As Sam and I are hoping and planning for a puppy next year, we figure Kiko should be at least somewhat of a role model for good behavior. So each day after breakfast, on our walks, and after dinner, we practice some obedience training. Kiko learned how to "sit" at a very young age, but we did not further his training much, and we have often used the word "No" to signal for him to do something else instead of using the positive training methods we are learning now from Ian Dunbar. In the last few weeks Kiko has learned to "lay down," "stay," and he has also learned the term "off" for when we want him to get away from something. Kiko is VERY food-motivated, so it makes training easy with treats. However, I know that as soon as the treats are taken away, the obedience stops. Kiko will just look at me with his head cocked to the side and a quizzical look on his face as if to say, "But you forgot the treat mommy. I'll wait here until you go get it and then I'll do what you want me to do." ;) Clever one he is. I am hoping that, with time, he will learn to do what I am asking without treats, but I imagine it might take a bit longer than puppy training since he's had seven years to perfect non-obedience training.

We are also working on "heel" but that seems to be hit and miss. He gets distracted when we walk past his food bowl or if we walk into the kitchen he is soon off sniffing and scavenging for food. Ahhhh, dog training is hard work! For now, enjoy a recent photo of Kiko doing what he does best . . . snoozing in his bed with his stuffed animals, Cow and Frog.

And Now a Little History . . . Bringing Home Baby Kiko

Seven years ago Sam and I set out on a hunt for pug breeders in central Florida, where we lived at the time. At that time the internet was not much of an accessible route to find information about dog breeds or breeders, so we did things the old fashioned way -- we called people on the phone. We went through the Florida pug association and rescue and talked to several people about pugs before we got to a breeder near Gainesville named Glinda Weathers. Glinda had a reputation in the pug breeding circles for breeding healthy and beautiful pugs, and I remember talking with her on the phone for almost two hours the first time we spoke. It felt like a good connection, and I asked some questions about health, the parents of the litter, and temperament. Of course at that time I did not know all of the things that I know now to ask a breeder, but I thought I was doing pretty well and was proud of myself for asking about eye problems and breathing problems! I felt like a pro then, but looking back I know I was such a novice at this stuff. So, we thought Glinda was a good choice for us, and she had come recommended by several others in the state pug clubs.

Kiko was born on June 21st, 2001, and he came to us at 12 weeks old. Glinda kept all her puppies for 12 weeks and actually began potty training and crate training them before they went to their new homes. I remember her also saying it was important for her to get 2 rounds of shots in before sending them off to their new homes. I got to meet baby Kiko once when he was around 7-8 weeks old and then drove back up towards Glinda's place to pick him up at 12 weeks. Oh god he was SO adorable. Baby Kiko was the most adorable pug puppy I've ever seen!! Now I know that Sam and I are a bit biased, but we would get stopped regularly by other people who would "ooh" and "ahh" over him. He was so little at 12 weeks that I used to carry him on my arm into stores and he would just sleep there the whole time I would shop. Sam and I bought a baby sling for him and he would ride in that, too. Although we got many looks from human baby parents when they saw that in our sling was a puppy and not a baby.

As soon as Kiko was able to, we joined a local pug play group called "Pug Central" and began attending the local "Pug Parties" in town. Kiko was an instant hit at the parties, and as soon as he would come into the room of 30 or so pugs, they would all swarm him and chase him around the room, which he just loved!! Those parties were hysterical, because there would be about an hour and a half of snorting, sneezing, chasing, running, climbing, playing, and other crazy pug activities and then all of a sudden just about every pug in the party would pass out and then you knew the party was "over" and everyone would take their sleepy pug home. Kiko would always sleep for about a day after one of his pug parties, they were great!

After about a year with Kiko we had an opportunity to adopt a great rescue pug named Mr. Bentley, and you can read the previous post for Bentley's story. As Sam has written, Bentley came into our lives like a "tornado," and him and Kiko were partners in crime for about six years. I think Kiko has missed Bentley and has been lonely since his passing, as I notice he craves a lot more attention and wants to be near us much more often than before, when he could just cuddle with Mr. B.

I am posting a picture of Kiko on the page from when he was a little guy, I think less than a year old . . . Enjoy!

First, A Dedication

This blog is dedicated to Mr. Bentley, our little buddy who crossed over the Rainbow Bridge earlier this year. Thank you, Bentley, for bringing so much joy to our lives for the six lucky years we spent with you. You are loved and missed, and can never be replaced.

Here is our youtube video of Mr. B: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMWXQnjqre0

And here is the tribute that Sam wrote for Bentley after his passing in April 2008:

When Carol from our pug playgroup sent an e-mail about a pug that needed rescuing, we had no idea what we were getting into. Sure, there was that video that showed a small black dog spinning like a top and barking like a madman. He was a force of nature, a miniature tornado, but we wanted to help. So, with Carol’s assistance we arranged to take Bentley in.

He was a mess. He was already missing several teeth and our vet noted that he needed a few more pulled out. On top of that, it was obvious he had been abused.

The first few months we had him we had to hand feed him because he wouldn’t eat from his bowl at all. He would stare down at his bowl and start growling as though someone was going to come take his food away. It would take us half an hour or more to feed him kibble after kibble in this manner.

After some time, he was finally able to eat food from a bowl, but it was perhaps several months after that when we noticed a change in Bentley. We think it was because of Kiko, our other dog. It’s the only explanation that makes sense. Bentley started playing with toys.

Once he started playing, his real personality came out from under the years of abuse. He greeted us daily with his excited yowl, hopping on his two forepaws, ears flapping up and down.

He’s been with us for nearly six years now. When he first entered into our lives, the vet estimated that Bentley was between eight and 10 years old. So, he was already an older dog, with older dog problems. Those problems were compounded a couple of years ago when Bentley slipped a disc in his back.

It didn’t seem to hinder Bentley much, if at all. Sure, his gait was a little more wobbly, but he was still playing and bounding around as if nothing had happened. Then, the first episode occurred. His hind legs wouldn’t move as if he were paralyzed. Steroid shots seemed to do the trick, and he was back again, bounding around the house as if he owned it.

Unfortunately, as Bentley got older, steroids and anti-inflammatories were no longer enough to stave off the pain. Over the last couple of months, his quality of life deteriorated to the point that we had to keep him in his crate except during meals and bathroom breaks for fear that he would hurt himself trying to run around.

More recently, his pain became even more obvious as he started to scream when his back would spasm suddenly. These screaming sessions could last for quite a while. Finally, last night, as Liz sat with Bentley in the wee hours of the morning working through his latest spasm, the decision was made.

Bentley, Mr. Bentley Fartbottom, Mr. B, B-Dog, Bobo, Bent, Pug2… These were the names we knew him by. We will remember his woo-woo-woo yowl. We will remember his impossibly long tongue that barely fit in his mouth and would often slip out when he was sleeping. We will remember his huge eyes that looked as though he understood our every word. We will remember his wagging tail that greeted us every day. We will remember his barking at anything and everything that moved just as long as it was on the other side of the fence or window, whatever the case may be. We will remember his energetic fetching. We will remember his love of plush toys. We will remember his ear-flapping hop when it was time to eat. We will remember his skittishness around other animals. We will remember his old man noises. We will remember his extremely sharp dew claw. We will remember the clickety-clack noises his claws made on the wood and tile floors. We will remember him sunning himself in the backyard. We will remember his disdain for snow. We will remember his “accidents” on the kitchen floor. We will remember him humping his “brother”, Kiko. We will remember The Spin.

–sam and liz